Ukrainian deputy defence minister resigns over procurement scandal

Deputy Defence Minister Vyacheslav Shapovalov responsible for logistics has resigned following a procurement scandal that rocked Ukraine, according to Kyiv Independent.

Ukrainian newspaper ZN.UA reported on January 21 that Defence Ministry purchases some foods for the military at prices two to three times higher than those at Kyiv grocery stores.

The ministry called corruption allegations "unprimed and unsubstantiated" but thanked Shapovalov, who was in charge of procurement, for taking the fall.

It is unknown whether Shapovalov was asked to resign following journalists' findings.

Journalists claim to have obtained a recent Defence Ministry contract for food procurement of soldiers in 2023 for the total amount of 13.16 billion hryvnias ($360 million). The document was concluded on December 23.

The publication alleges that the inflated prices indicate a possible corruption scheme.

On January 23, Defence Minister Oleksiy Reznikov came out with a statement calling inflated prices a “technical error” of the contractor, who “made a mistake while transferring data from one table to another.”

Reznikov dismissed the investigative report as “nothing but manipulations” and promised repercussions to those who leaked the contract to journalists, adding that the Security Service will look for the alleged whistleblower.